Fights, threats put Seabreeze HS on alert

Police and school leaders in Daytona Beach are looking for answers after a number of fights and threats at a local high school.

On Wednesday, Daytona Beach police officers were again, swarming an area near the Seabreeze High School campus.  At lunch time, officers said a fight broke out in the parking lots of several businesses just up the block from the school -- between several high school students and some adult construction workers.

According to a spokesman for the department, the students and workers got in an argument that involved both sides directing racial slurs at one another before one of the students pulled out a knife. Police said that student will be charged once identified.

Officers said one of the construction workers reportedly told the students he was armed with a gun and motioned to his waist, but never actually showed a weapon. At this point the department said the workers aren’t facing any charges.

A representative for the Volusia County School District said that at no time Wednesday did the school go into lockdown as a result of the incident, nor was any of the incident on school property. However, they said it was also quickly broken up by police as patrols were already amped-up near the campus Wednesday.

On Tuesday, more than 700 students, nearly half of the school’s population, was reported absent after police got a call about an unidentified student saying they were going to bring a gun to campus on Tuesday and that quote "will be the end."

The police report says an officer interviewed two students who said they had seen a video and text messages with the threats.

The threat also comes after reports of a series of fights at and near the school over the past 2 months; fights police say may also be racially motivated.

One of those fights was last Friday and a 15-year-old student was arrested for bringing a box cutter onto school property. 

Along with the increased police presence on Wednesday, the district also reported efforts to find solutions to the ongoing issues. The district spokesperson said school leaders will be forming groups with students and staff to get to the bottom of the situation.

Additionally, only about 70 students were reported absent Wednesday, the district said a normal level of absences at the high school. 

Following the fight Wednesday, the district said additional police patrols in the area will continue indefinitely during the off-campus lunch hour. Daytona Beach Police said they will continue to beef up their presence on the situation as they try to stay in front of it.